STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- To Neila Nuzzi, the employees at the Dongan Hills-based Rite Aid were like "family."

The pharmacy at the Dongan Hills site, which has changed hands among several big box pharmacies over the last four decades, have been filling prescriptions for Ms. Nuzzi and her mother, Carmela
Nuzzi, for over 20 years.

But come Thursday, that store will shut its doors for good.

"If you had a health problem and couldn't get in touch with your doctor,
the pharmacists at Rite Aid could help you...This is another Staten
Island staple that is going away," said Ms. Nuzzi, who also is a Realtor
with Neuhaus Realty.

"One of the employees there was in tears
this week as she said goodbye to all the long-time customers...She had
been working at the store since it was Genovese Drug Store," she added.

Rite Aid officials say the catalyst
for the shut down comes from the Dongan Hills store's weak performance
in recent years and the fact that its lease has expired.

"The
store was under performing and our lease was up for renewal, so we made
the difficult decision to cease operations at that location," said
Ashley Flower, a Rite Aid spokeswoman.

The site has been a
pharmacy for more than 30 years, having formerly housed Genovese Drug
Store from the mid-1980s, which was then acquired by Eckerd in 1998, and
later bought out by Rite Aid in 2007.

The low-performance isn't
surprising to some customers, who have had a choice of several big box
chain pharmacies, including a CVS and Walgreens, within a five block
radius of Rite-Aid.

"It's so sad. I have been coming here since it was Genovese Drug Store,"
said Linda Russo of Elitingville, who said her mother lives near by and
gets her prescriptions there.

"I now go to the Rite Aid in Annadale, but come here for my mother," she added.

Bay Terrace resident Alketa Zhabjaku, who was shopping at Rite-Aid on Wednesday with her two children, Arela, 17-months and Arlind, 4-years-old said, "I'm not happy they are closing because a lot of people shop here for the pharmacy, and usually the store has good deals."
Advance photo/Jan Somma-Hammel

Said
Bay Terrace resident Alketa Zhabjaku, who was shopping at Rite Aid on
Wednesday with her two children, Arela, 17 months, and Arlind,
4 years old, "I'm not happy they are closing because a lot of people
shop here for the pharmacy, and usually the store has good deals."

Rite Aid patrons' prescriptions have been transferred to Walgreens on Clove Road in Grasmere, just a few blocks away, said Ms. Flower.

"Starting Friday patrons can pick up their prescriptions at Walgreens. It's a really standard transaction for us; it's private and everything remains protected and confidential," she said.

"It will be a seamless transition. We are working very closely with Walgreens," she added.

While the store will close On Thursday, it will reopen on March 1 for a liquidation sale.

"This will be for all the store's 'front-end' merchandise -- all non-pharmacy items. It will stay open as long as it takes to sell through the merchandise," said Ms. Flower.

Rite Aid is working to relocate the employees of the store, said Ms. Flower.

The owner of the property is listed in property records as Staten Island LLC, which has a Charleston, S.C. address. There is no information available as to what will occupy the storefront in the future.